An Early Stocking Stuffer

After yet another early-season victory, the positive vibes were flowing from the Maryland locker room Monday night. And why shouldn't they be? After defeating American and avenging a loss that dampened the Terps' Christmas spirit last season, the team stands at 8-2 and in prime position to enter the conference season riding a giant wave of momentum.

A reminder of just how smoothly this bunch is currently operating was taped above Greivis Vasquez's locker stall. It was a 3X5 notecard on which an assistant coach had praised Vasquez for his performance during a practice.

Greivis: At practice on Monday you had a great attitude. You were fired up, talking a lot and look at your stats.

Assistant coach Rob Ehsan, who wrote the note, said the notecard has been there for weeks and that it was written after a practice in which Vasquez had performed particularly well while consciously attempting to inspire those around him.

Another team souce said a while back that the difference the coaching staff sought in Vasquez this season was exactly that quality -- to display the same passion and excitement at the sight of a positive play by one of his teammates as he often does after his own stellar moves.

So far, you would have to say Vasquez has done fairly well in that regard. How large of a role Vasquez's attitude toward and around his teammates has played in the team's solid start would be hard to determine, but it certainly has been more of a positive than a negative influence so far.

Greivis is obviously the key and catalyst to this teams success. I like his attitude this season so far as opposed to last year. He is an extremely talented kid that sometimes tries to do it all by himself but I have seen less and less of that this season and the team is definitely benefiting from it.

I hate to say it as I am a huge Terps fan, but to this point Greivis Vasquez has been pretty much a jerk. His individual talent is great, but he really has not done much to help his team mates get better. Every time he makes a good play he screams and tugs at his jersey like he just hit the winning shot against Duke or UNC. People say he is emotional, so be it, but what he does is borderline unsportsmanlike and often steps over the border. he has cost the team games with his "emotion" and has berated his team mates for making mistakes while running around with his hair on fire making the same type of turn overs and missing ill advised shots. fter one of those bad plays he is useless for several after that as he pouts about it. Emotion is very over rated, and even detremental when left unchecked. Control however....

He played for his country in the world championships, played well and got some compliments from Kobe Bryant, also not the best team mate, so he must be talented. At times though he simply looks like the stat stuffer on a very average team. In other words his team makes him look good instead of the other way around. Just like Kobe.